This weekend I am visiting colleges in California thanks to the two day break. While here I was able to visit Griffith Park to see the Hollywood sign and the Griffith Observatory. What I was not expecting when visiting Griffith Park was to see a theater modeled after the ancient greek ones.
This theater also has some interesting history. In 1896 Colonel Griffith J. Griffith donated 3 acres of land to Los Angeles for public recreation. For many years the 3 acre property remained unchanged, until in 1919 Griffith died. In his will he left a trust fund for 1 million dollars to build an observatory and theater modeled after the greek. The theater was dedicated on September 25th of 1930, and held its show in June of 1931. The theater was used as barracks during WWII, and held the likes of Bruce Springsteen and Elton John.
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As you can see, however, this theater varies greatly from the ancient theaters in Epidaurus and Delphia. First of all the setting area for The Greek, as it is called is not as round and uniform as the ancient theaters. The Greek has three sections split up by horizontal gangways and two separate side sections form more of a polygonal shape instead of forming a semicircle. This theater also does not have a separate section for the chorus and actors. Instead of a stage and orchestra, there is just one stage since most plays in the 1920s did not heavily involve a chorus. There are many similarities however including a scenic backdrop to the stage and playhouse. To me it was interesting to see the similarities and differences between The Greek and actual ancient greek theaters.
1 comment:
I'm also in LA for college visits and also saw the Greek Theater in Griffith Park, so would like to comment a little more about it. I think it's incredible the impact Greek, and particularly Athenian, civilization has had on Western culture. Despite only a few dozen plays surviving two thousand years later, the Greeks are closely associated with a sort of golden age of theater. It's pretty remarkable that they have this kind of influence, and speaks both to the impressiveness of the cultural achievement of Athens as well as the way historical figures like the Greek become revered and idealized in history. With the lasting cultural impact of the Greeks on Western thought, it makes sense that they are still very influential; however, I still think it's crazy that the cultural output of basically one city from one century two thousand years ago is still such that the Greeks are closely identified with theater and other art forms.
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